Until now, USC football has never scheduled an FCS opponent for a regular season game.  It was among only three remaining teams carrying on this tradition, along with two of USC’s most storied rivals: UCLA and Notre Dame.  To surrender the equivalent of the “moral high ground” to these conspicuous remaining teams in such a high profile sport is unconscionable with the heritage and tradition of USC football.

It seems a strategic error has been made by the USC Athletic Department in scheduling UC Davis, which would be its first FCS opponent in history, in 2021 for a regular season game.  The apparent reasons were that no other FBS teams were available or willing to play a game on that open September 4, 2021 date.  So instead of adhering to an admirable legacy and leaving the date open while continuing to solicit other FBS schools, USC Athletics went to the FCS, breaking with a sacred adherence embedded in the fabric of USC history.  This decision runs considerable and unwarranted risk among USC Alumni, the USC Community, and all those who know and love USC Football, of drastically and permanently affecting their view of the USC Football Program and of the University in general.

We urge in the strongest possible terms that the USC Athletic Department reconsider this decision to schedule USC Football against FCS UC Davis in 2021, and leave the date open playing an 11-game regular season if an FBS opponent cannot be scheduled for that date.  It is simply the right thing to do.